Leading with Value: The Currency of New Marketing

/5 Comments/in , , , /by

In my keynotes and workshops on internet marketing (which I am hereby referring to as “new marketing”), one of my key concepts is “leading with value.” For me, a key part of business in general is creating (and maintaining) relationships. Of course, business is about much more than just making money. But, in this culture, that’s easy to forget. My real bottom line is the fact that the quality of the relationships that I have created via my business are perhaps the greatest source of satisfaction that I have in my work (right up there with the creative satisfaction and opportunity to make a difference).

For this reason, I am particularly enthusiastic about the authentic aspects of social media that literally depend upon “leading with value.” Social media is about networking, which to me means “virtually meeting” new, interesting people and learning new things from them. And, likewise, being able to easily share what I consider to be valuable information with as many people as possible. I love that. I enjoy it so much that sometimes I even think, “I was born for social media” …and I’m not even a social media “big shot.”

So along these lines, I simply want to start my Monday morning by sharing a couple of insightful blog posts that to me do a great job of underscoring some important aspects of our new media world. Hopefully, they will provide sparks for you as they have for me, so we can all go out and (like the Beatles said) “make it better”:

  • Focusing on Value: How I’m Changing How I Use Twitter
    This is one of the most substantive blog posts I’ve read in some time, and I especially like it because it addresses, in a very real and pragmatic way, how best to deal with Twitter users who spam. Bottom line, don’t auto-follow everyone back; and most importantly, un-follow all those affiliate marketers who are only trying to “capture” your dollars.
  • The Five Essential Pillars of a Social Media Campaign
    This list of values provide a foundation for social media relationship building that are, as the author says, “essential.” They include “generosity” which is very close to my “Leading with Value” concept.
  • ABC-TV News on “Marketing with Meaning”
    Yes, marketing executives are actually writing books on how marketing campaigns are more effective when they have MEANING. What a concept! Nice to see it being covered in the so-called mainstream media.

Enjoy! And keep having fun out there.

Phenomenal iPhone Photo Website + iPhone App

/1 Comment/in /by

The Best Camera websiteI love this. I’ve been playing around with iPhone photo editing apps for a month or two, but I just discovered Chase Jarvis’ TheBestCamera.com (as in “the best camera is the one that’s with you”) and now I’m more excited about iPhone photography than ever before.

This integrated offering has me really impressed. Not only is it probably the best iPhone photo editing app that I’ve seen; but, it’s got integrated photo sharing to Twitter and Facebook built in, plus instant uploading to a true iPhone photo community site. Get the picture? (yes, pun intended) In fact, they’ve got the Big Picture. They’ve thought this through and put together what is essentially a mobile photography platform that’s sophisticated, feature rich, supported by great user interface (online and on iPhone). Very well done.

This iPhone app has already made it onto my first page of iPhone apps… a first! In fact, I’m using it to replace Apple’s iPhone Camera app.

As far as I can tell both TheBestCamera website and Mr. Jarvis himself have really “got it going on.” I’ll let him introduce himself via the video below. The app and the site are very much worth checking out, in my humble opinion…

The Power of the Blog

/2 Comments/in , , /by

Even though blogging is currently a very big buzz… a “buzz word du jour” even, I still think it widely misunderstood. So, what’s The Big Idea?

First of all, your blog is your home base. If you’re doing social media marketing, it’s the center of your virtual storm. Your Twitter, Facebook and other social media posts all link back to your blog.

Perhaps even more importantly, your blog is where you find your voice. It’s a real world exercise in speaking your truth and finding your value, making your offering. It’s not a new marketing trick. It’s actually the heart of authentic, transparent, 21st Century marketing.

But don’t take my word for it. Here’s an awesome video clip featuring two true marketing “gurus.” Don’t be fooled, this video is less than 2 minutes long, but you may not hear a more important message this week (or month? or year?) So maybe you’ll want to watch it more than once? You probably know the speakers. Seth Godin who has written some of the most creative as well as best-selling internet marketing books ever (in fact he coined the term “permission marketing”) and Tom Peters of “In Search of Excellence” and so many other best sellers. Listen carefully. These guys not only really know what works, they are sharing what’s most essential to them… and apparently that’s blogging!

3 Leading Edge Video Clips Illuminate Next Gen Video Web

/1 Comment/in /by

One benefit of my on-going back recovery is that I’m currently watching even more online video than usual. This weekend, I was delighted to discover a rich sampling of video clips that I found inspiring as well as informative. So, of course, I want to share the three carefully selected video clips embedded below with you, dear readers, blog commenters and tweet peeps.

I invented the term “Video Web” when I was writing for Videography magazine, and now that this particular dimension of the Web is expanding and improving in quality at an exponential rate, I find that it also just keeps getting better (at least by my subjective standards). I hope you will agree that these clips are exemplary of something good and that they also reflect some valuable trends and useful models. But, even more importantly, I think that each of them also delivers actionable, leading edge information (at least for some of you).

1. “RIP: A Remix Manifesto,” A Mashup Culture Flick with a Message
The first clip is a trailer for an independent feature film, RIP: A Remix Manifesto being distributed via the Web as well as in theaters, Internet cafes and at film festivals. Being a strong believer in the importance of freedom around the controversial issues of digital rights, I was so inspired by the content I saw in the trailer and on the producer’s other sites, I coughed up $5 (optional) and downloaded the whole movie. (This was a first for me.) It’s really well done. It’s as clear as anything I’ve seen—certainly at this length—in illuminating these important rights issues. And, because of its real world examples (most notably the mashup performing artist, Girl Talk), this movie authentically walks its talk on many levels. Highly recommended!

2. Leo Laporte Explains Successful Webcasting with Transparency
Personally, I admit to not being a fan of podcasting pioneer and former TechTV host, Leo Laporte; however, for obvious reasons, Mashable’s headline, “Leo Laporte Makes $1.5 Million Per Year from Podcasting” caught my eye. And then, as I started listening to the 40-minute conference talk below, I was impressed by not only the success of the Twit.tv entrepreneur, but by his willingness to share pretty much everything he knows about what’s working and what’s not working in the world of Net video advertising and more. He also frankly shares his experiences as he has made the migration from failed broadcaster willing to call an idiot an “idiot” and a stupid business model “stupid,” to someone who has built a viable online “netcasting” business that is reportedly doubling every year. Laporte has really been there and done that, and he’s not afraid to tell you what he knows. I like that.

3. Epipheo Creates Viral Wave Explaining Google Wave
Clear, concise video clips that explain technology with under-stated style are quite close to my heart. If you don’t know, Google Wave is a “next big thing” groupware, collaborative platform currently in “limited beta” at Google. Amongst the technorati, there’s quite a buzz. Even Business Week thinks it could be big. Enter the video clip below, “What is Google Wave?” from Epipheo Studios. This clip was just released a few days ago and I have personally watched it go from about 150K views to over 200K views on YouTube in the last 24 hours (as of Sunday night, 10/4). Watch it. I think you might learn something worth knowing, at least if you’re interested in the leading edge of online collaboration; and, for sure, you’ll see a neat, short video clip that tells its story well. A tip of my virtual hat to you, epipheo guys. 🙂

I look forward to your comments. Thanks!